State Auditor to Review Yum Center

A Louisville Metro Councilman plans to ask the state auditor to conduct a review of the Louisville Arena Authority, which oversees the KFC Yum Center. Councilman Dan Johnson says the authority, which is a state body, has been mismanaged, and the University of Louisville’s control over the authority’s board has caused it to underperform.

“It needs to be changed, and that’s what I’m mad about. I want an NBA team in Louisville to be honest with you, sir, and you can’t do it with things like that. They don’t want an NBA team, [laughter] because they won’t want competition, but competition is what we all live with,” said Johnson.

Auditor Adam Edelen’s office has not returned a request for comment from Kentucky Public Radio. Bonds for the Yum Center were recently downgraded to junk status by two major credit rating agencies, calling into question the arena’s ability to pay off its debt.